Ply and Burl

Remember this hat from ages ago?

Well, here’s the pattern, finally!

Yarn: One skein Noro Kureyon, pick your colorway
Needles: US 7 DPs or Circular (I love knitting on two circulars, more on that later.)
Gauge: 16 to 17 sts per 4″
Size: Men’s hat, made for 22 to 23″ head circumference.

Notes:

This hat is meant to fit snugly on a man’s head, so it actually fits quite comfortably on a woman’s head too. If you wanted to adapt it for a gal, I’d suggest nixing an inch from the circumference for a tighter hat, or just keeping it the same for a fitting but not-too-snug hat, and reducing the stockinette section by 1 to 1.5″. (I did that on my first try, and the hat fit me well, but I had to rip out because it was for the boy!)

Pattern:

Cast on 88 sts.

Work, in the round, 2×2 ribbing for about 1″.

Work in stockinette for 4.5″. In last row, place marker every 11 sts.

Switch to the following pattern until 5 sts remain between markers:
Rnd 1: k2tog before each marker (reducing 11 sts in total)
Rnd 2: Knit.

When five sts remain between markers, k2tog before each marker on every row until 1 st remains between markers.

Remove markers, thread yarn through remaining sts, cinch up, tie or graft off and voila!

As I send this out into cyberspace, I expect to hear a resounding echo of my own voice, signaling that there is no one left reading my poor, abandoned blog. Sorry, digital friends, for having been gone so long. Who knew grad school would crumple up my life like a ball of tin foil, stomp it into a pancake and then swallow it whole in one big bite?

As you can tell, I’m still learning the grad school time management thing. Until I do, I can only steal a few minutes here and there to myself. Which has meant not much knitting. Also, dangit, I’ve lost the cord to download photos from my camera, so the few pictures I do have are locked in. As for gardening, moving to a new town and renting a house with virtually no yard has meant only a few neglected potted veggies on the front stoop.

From the above perspective, it’s looks a sad state. But I swear, there are fun parts! I’m designing a technical system that tries to help the homeless! I’m doing systems consulting for a creative group at GM! I’m learning to scrape data from the web and elicit interesting things from it using Perl! Yay!

I’m also not sleeping much and reading hundreds of pages of papers a week. The thorn on the rose, I suppose.

One good thing — since the last time I wrote, in the thick of my lazy summer, I’ve lost 25 pounds. So I’m no longer shy about posting pictures of myself in the Sunrise Circle Jacket! It turned out quite beautifully, though I had to felt it a little in the dryer to get it to fit better. Sadly, however, the Airy Cardigan turned out to be a boxy, floppy thing, that was bad even before I shrunk out of it.

Also, in the next post (which I’m going to write RIGHT NOW!) — the pattern for Joel’s Kuryeon hat, which has been waiting in the wings for months.

I’ve missed you all, my blogger friends, so if you get this, my golden record, do send me a sign!

Finally, the in-betweens are over! We left Ithaca a last Tuesday and have been in Ann Arbor for one week as of today. Recycling night was Sunday, so were finally able to clear the boxes and newspapers out of the living room. I took a load to Salvation Army yesterday, and have been posting the things on Craigslist that I should have sold before the move rather than after. The house is slowly getting organized and is starting to feel like home.

Our new place is essentially a cottage in the city, and is just a hair less funky than I can take, which is perfect. It’s at the back of another lot, meaning our front door opens onto one street, and our back door opens onto the driveway of a house on another. We have a perimeter of about three feet of yard on two sides of the house, one of which is shady, and one of which is overgrown with burdock. Where our front yard would be, there is poured cement.

As you can imagine, this is putting an interesting twist on my gardening. I’ve arrived in A2 too late to start a veggie plot at a community garden site. However, in anticipation of needing to scratch my gardening itch, I planted some basil, peppers, and geraniums in pots early in the summer, which I then transported out here during the move. Since arriving, we’ve picked up a few herbs and put those in pots, and I’ve also planted some Scarlet Runner Beans in hopes that they’ll bolt up and obscure the not-so-classy posts for the porch that overhangs our front door. It’s no gardener’s paradise, but it’s something!

Knitting has been, well, neglected. There, I admit it. That’s part of the reason I haven’t blogged in so long! I had no time for it, with the work and the travel and the move and all the heart-wrenching goodbye dates before we left. I was working through the spring on the Airy Cardigan, and made a lot of progress. All that remains to finish it is a single sleeve, but I’m finding the kid mohair so irritating to knit that I can barely look at the thing. Not to mention that it fits like a mumu… not my sartorial favorite.

Weirdly, a few days ago, as I was unpacking, I picked up a crochet hook. I ran across my copy of Stitch and Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker, which a friend gave me for my birthday last year. Now, let me not mince words: I hate crocheting! I hate how it looks, I am a klutz with the hook, and it just generally bugs me.

But guess what? I’m actually enjoying it! Gah — Internet, don’t repeat that to anyone. I can’t believe I actually let it out of my mouth. But there it is, the truth laid bare, probably destined to alienate all my knitter friends. Oh well, try to still love me, OK? I can’t help that I’m open-minded, and crocheting just walked right in the door.

My house right now is littered with little purple crochet bits — my practice swatches. I’ve learned single crochet, double crochet, triple crochet, the shell stitch, and the fishnet stitch. My mind is full of the tackiest ideas, too: I’ll crochet plant hangers for the house! I’ll make a purse out of the shell stitch! I’ll crochet the cowboy hat pattern from the book!

Look, knitters, I know this is a dangerous path I’m going down. But hear me out, ’cause I’m one of you: a knitter through and through. At the same time, I’m thinking that there are several instances of crochet that aren’t tacky! Think beautiful crocheted lace our foremothers made from fine thread. Or the afghans that keep us warm in the winter! My grandmother and her mother both crocheted afghans for all their kids and grandkids. Mine, which I got to pick out the yarn for, is one of my most treasured possessions. My grandma passed away 11 years ago, and I still love and guard that blanket like a mama bear guards her cubs. It’s got my gram’s touch in every stitch, and her hands, which look like my hands, held every thread in it. It revives her in my mind, and brings her closer to me. (That could make a good advertisement no? “Crochet: It brings people back from the dead!”)

So this crochet phase? I think it’s kind of sweet, don’t you? I know it’s illogical, sentimental, and entirely misguided, but still, don’t deny it: crochet just melted a little bit of your sappy heart.

p.s. As a cure for my homesickness (and wet feet in the rain) I bought these new stylin’ shoes!

p.p.s. Also, even better news: the boy and I got engaged on July 2!

Thinking, no big deal, I’ll just up and design a baby bootie on the fly? Think again, young Jedi.

I am embarrassed to admit that these booties gave me a serious run for my money. I tried to stripe them around the gusset, resulting in about sixty thousand straggly end pieces everywhere. Then, when I finally settled on a simpler pattern, I kept getting messed up turning the heel, which is ridiculous, considering the heel had, oh, 12 stitches to turn. Twelve measly stitches, and I was on the mat, begging for mercy. I was heel impaired for just that one weekend — yesterday I turned 32 heel stitches and didn’t blink an eye.

In the end, I think I won. The second one was a breeze, and the pair came out super cute. They finally went off to the new guy in Boston last week.

On another note, can I go crazy and link to some non-knitting stuff? It’s been interesting out there lately!

Women of Our Time from the Smithsonian is a photo gallery of influential women of the 20th century. Click on the photos for a biography. Inspiring!

NPR is blogging the Most Promising Musicians from SXSW this year. My favorite? Amy Winehouse, whose killer song “Rehab” will have you singing for hours.

Oh, Yoga Today, how I adore you. You rock so hard. Free one-hour yoga classes from three great instructors in Jackson Hole, WY. (Mostly Ashtanga, but I just did a really interesting Kundalini one last night.) You can view them on the website, or subscribe to the podcast and get a new one every day. From a long time yoga practitioner, I can say confidently that these are great classes, and are not too easy.

The Speech Accent Archive has people from all over the US and the world reading the same quote in small audio files. It’s fascinating to listen to the differences in accent.

Ironwood Designs is an Etsy shop that my woodworker boyfriend recently opened. Cute stuff and getting cuter.

The last few weeks have been hectic, with a visit to UC San Diego, discussions with U Mich and Cornell, and lots of thinking about my future. Not to mention the giant backlog of website work that’s been plaguing me for months.

Remarkably, in the middle of the tumult, I’ve managed to produce an FO! One of my oldest friends is having her first baby, most likely later this month, which has resulted in my first ever urge to knit a baby anything. Though the idea of having my own bundle of poopy diapers sends a cringe washing over me, I’ve found myself unabashedly enthusiastic for my friend’s impending motherhood. It’s coming out on my needles: behold, my first ever baby hat, in Rowan Cashsoft:

I’m mid-matching-bootie as we speak. Baby bootie, that is.

I’ve also been contentedly plugging away at my first Pomatomus socks. There is something hypnotizing about this pattern. I love love love it. This might sound fruity, but I think Cookie has tapped into a deep human aesthetic with this repeating curve pattern. Seriously, pomatomus = deeply tapping.

Enough philosophy. Here’s the pic:

The yarn is from my wonderful summer secret pal, Wendy. It’s Meilenweit MegaBoots Stretch and it’s sooooooper cool. Very stretchy, gorgeous colors.

The Embossed Leaves Socks are finished! I made these in Knit Picks Essential in Grass on size 1 needles.

A few notes:

• The pattern called for #2 needles, but I felt that the socks were looking too big and dropped to #1 needles. BAD IDEA. These socks are tiny. When in doubt, go with the larger needles.

• As I mentioned before, the toe is very elegant, with its implied swirling decreases. The cinched stiches at the end are invisible, and they don’t rub against your toes.

• This is a fairly simple pattern — if you pay attention at first, it becomes pretty easy to memorize.

• The yarn turned out to work really well, with a nice bloom, but it tended to be a little splity.

In other news, Yarn-a-go-go got a Uke! Lucky gal. Here’s the object of my musical lustings (aside from a big hug and private concert from Elvis Perkins):

A Banjo Uke! Sweet instrument of my heart. Got one you want to sell?

All that careful washing and shaping and what do I find nesting on my Hourglass Sweater last night, ever so comfy and snuggled in?

8$%@!$&* Iggy! Damnit.

But still, is he not irresistably cute? Aw.

Part deux of the three part series on washing my Hourglass Sweater, made with Elsabeth Lavold’s Silky Wool, nine-months untouched by soap and water.
(See here for Part one, The Prelude..)

Finally, got the tool I needed: a sweater drying rack. Just $7 at Target!

Soap, water, sink to wash it in? Check.

Get the water sudsy, then take the plunge!

While the sweater is soaking, run downstairs and find the vinegar. Bragg’s apple cider, “With the Mother,” as it says on the label.

After draining the soapy water, and giving it a good squeeze out, this is all we’ve got for nine months of grit.

But after the second rinse, the sink came clean!

Final rinse, we (gulp!) add the vinegar and swish swish swish,..

Mmm, smells like “The Mother”

Lay it out on the towel and roll up to squeeze out the water.

Voila, laid out to dry! Shaping is a little tricky because the rack is small, and the sleeves seem to have gotten a little longer (eek!), so stay tuned for part three, when we see how it dried!

My hourglass sweater, poor girl: she hasn’t been washed since I finished her. IN APRIL.

I know that this timeframe seems thoroughly disgusting, but it’s actually a self-moderating cycle. I’m don’t wear her much because I don’t want to get her dirty because I’m too afraid to wash her! I knit her in Elsebeth Lavold’s Silky Wook and I haven’t, in the past, found good instructions for washing it. My neurosis stems from the fact that the texture of this yarn reminds me of a sweater I owned in high school. Every time I washed that sweater, the sleeves grew an inch and the body shrunk an inch. As a result, I’m a little gun shy. Nine months gun shy, to be exact.

I love this sweater and want to wear it more, so the time has come to confront my fears. I’ve done a little research (read: googled and taken the first result) and I’m ramping up to wash the sweater. Tonight!

What I need? A sweater drying rack. I’m off to Target to buy one this afternoon, so stay tuned for Installment 2!

In the meantime, for those who are interested, here are Instructions for washing Elsebeth Lavold’s Silky Wool from The Knitters Review. For the extended article on this yarn at Knitters Review, click here.

“[Lavold] advises that you turn your Silky Wool garment inside-out before you wash it, and that you use a mild detergent in lukewarm water. She also suggests you add a teaspoon of vinegar to your last rinse to revitalize the wool and silk.

“My swatches didn’t bleed in lukewarm or warmer water. They washed and rinsed beautifully, drying into perfect shape and becoming a soft, fuzzy, cohesive fabric.

“The silk offsets the innate fiber memory of wool, which means you’ll want to give extra care to reshape your garment before letting it dry.”

Maybe this will give me the courage to wash and photograph my final Sunrise Circle Jacket too!

It’s icy cold here, and the knitting obsession has set in. Every morning I wake up before the sun rises and all I want to do is knit. I know, it’s weird. My urges are weird. I’m weird.

Now, with my weirdness out of the way, my newest project: the Airy Cardigan from the Winter 2004 Interweave Knits, against a backdrop of window ice:

I’m knitting this in black, soft and fuzzy Soft Kid, which manages to be grippy and slippery at the same time. My usual finger-wrapping configuration isn’t working for this, because it puts too much tension on the yarn for the loose gauge. At the same time, when I wrap the yarn around fewer fingers, the yarn loosens and slides out of my grip.

What to do about this sticky yet slippery yarn? Any ideas?